Buttress team members become PLACED ambassadors

5th October 2016

Buttress team members Gwenno and Lucy are working with social enterprise, PLACED, to help more young people learn about the built environment.

Established in 2011, PLACED is founded on the belief that by bringing together local people and decision makers, we can create better places. It works with young people to help them influence and better understand the built environment, and is committed to raising aspirations, increasing skills and supporting diversification in the industry.

The pair have become part of a team of built environment professionals who are volunteering their time to deliver workshops to primary and secondary school pupils, covering a range of topics from designing school gardens to thinking about what makes a sustainable community.

Commenting on why she joined PLACED, Lucy, said: “When I was at school, there was very little information available that explained what the job of an architect really entailed. So when I heard about PLACED through a friend, I saw it as an opportunity to help young people find out what it’s like to work in the sector and how they can impact and shape the world around them.

“A lot of my day-to-day work focuses on the conversation or redevelopment of historic buildings, so I also wanted to use these skills to help more young people explore and understand their community’s heritage.”

Gwenno added: “I know all too well how daunting it can be to decide what to study at university or what career to pursue. Committing to seven years of work and study to become an architect, for example, wasn’t a decision I took lightly.

“For that reason, I wanted to join PLACED to use my experiences to help school leavers understand the variety of roles in the built environment sector and help them navigate the options.”

Since joining PLACED Gwenno has taken part in a workshop at the University of Central Lancashire, held for local 14-18 year olds. Over the course of the workshop, the group visited sites across Preston and were encouraged to think about the social, economic and community elements that go into creating a successful place. They were then tasked with designing a new building for one of the sites, which they then presented to their families.